Combined bookcase and vault therefor.



T. J. SCOTT.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO R. PPPP IOATION FILED SEPT. 20, 1913.

Patented Sept. 15, 1914.

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ff fiwnuw 180025; Maw-v Y T. J. SCOTT. UOMBINED BOOKGASB AND VAULTTHEREFOR.

APPLIOATION FILED SEPT. 20, 1913.

Patented Sept. 15, 1914.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

T. J. SCOTT. COMBINED BOOKGASB AND VAULT THEREFOR.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 20, 1913. R21 Y Patented Sept. 15, 1914.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 8.

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WIT/1128858: INVENTOR F1 3 Zfianuw JJZaZZ; W /.M mw' ATYORNEYTHOMASJAMES SCOTT, OF WINCHESTER, TENNESSEE.

COMBINED BOQKGASE AND VAULT THEREFOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 1 a, 1914.

Application filed September 20, 1913. Seriallii'c. 780,860.

. and the casing or shelves upon which they are held.

Among other objects, my invention has for its purpose to provide a meansof the general character stated, in which the book and file holdingcasing forms a part of the closurefor the vault, and in which the op.-eration of raising and lowering the book and file holding casing may beeffected manually or automatically and the transferring of the casingcontaining. the said books, etc. accomplished without the necessity ofdisarrangingor removing any of the books etc. from the casing shelving.

Another object of my invention is to provide a simple and convenientarrangement of a shiftable book and file holding casing, especiallydesigned that the books may be supported for convenient use during theday surrounded by a frame work constructed to serve as a desk ortable. 1

With further objectsin view, that. will hereinafter appear, my inventionconsists in a certain details of construction andnovel arrangement ofparts, all of which will be hereinafter fully explained, specificallypointed out in the appended claims, and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view that illusmentstaken-onathe line 4-4 onFig. 2. Fig.

5 is a perspective view of the book case or shelving, parts being brokenaway. Fig. 6

is a perspective view of the bottom end of the said book case and moreparticularly illustrates therarrangement of the truss rods hereafterreferred to; Fig. 7 isa detail perspective view. of the upper endof thecasing receiving; vault, portions of the uprights or guide frame membersbeing also shown. Fig. .8 is a cross section on the line 8-8 on Fig. 7.

While my invention is adapted for use in any kind of a building, and onany of the floors thereof, it is more especially designed for courthouse uses where there are no fireproof vaults.

In the drawing, I have shown my invention arrangedas a wall book-casingor shelving combined with front and side-desk portions, but I desire itunderstood my said invention may be readily arranged in the center ofthe room and a pair of abutting shelf casings or frames, jOlIlGdltO movetogether into and out of the vault or pit into which they are loweredwhen the books and files are stored for safekeeping.

Mycombined book and file case andvault can be made of any suitable size..In the drawings,finwhich I have illustrateda" preferredPlOPOTiJlOllEttB arrangement of the parts, 1 designates the floor of theroom and 8 a fire-proof vault or pit into which the shelf or framing islowered whenit is shifted to the place of safety.

2 designates the book or file casing,

' plateQ-i that its over the shelving and the end portions of thecasing, angle irons 25 secured around the upper edge of thecasing thatextend above the said edge to form a space 26 betweenthe plate Qfand asupplemental plate '27 that is secured to the said angle irons in anyvsuitable manner.

The bottom of the book and file casing has angle irons 28, attached andthese form pendent flanges 29 that strengthen the said bottom' and alsoprovide means for conveniently securing the ends of a pair of truss rods30 that'take over a bridge 39 formed by the pair of angle irons. 28 thatextend across wise over the said casing bottom, see Fig. 6. The vault orpit 3 into which the book casing is lowered and which ,is fire-proof,has its upper end flush with the top of the desk portions 4-5 and itextends down through the floora req uired distance for receiving thecasing when ity is lowered, and so thatthe top of the latter will beflush with the said desk portions vault and the top plate 27 hasits-ends and.

sides extended beyond the said angle iron portions 8, and notched as at9, the reason for which will presently appear. Vertical guide grooves 10are formed on each end member of the casing and they are made byattaching a pair of angle plates '1111' to the said casing ends, Theguides 10 serve to hold the casing steady as it *islraised or lowered in.the vault by engaging the guide cleats. 12. on the end walls of thevault as shown.

' Z. By reason of the peculiar construction of the parts, so fardescribed, it is obvious thatywhen the casing is lowered into the vaultthe top of the casing forms a part of the desk top and when elevated,the casing 'with .the shelves, rises from and forms, as

it were, a part-of the complete deskstructure; To keep the vaultdry,-the vault walls are formed with a dead air space 13 thatsurroundsthe vault wellor pit and which however does not communicatewiththe vault pit or'well.

.- In the practical arrangement ofmy invention the means for supportingthe casing and for raising and lowering it are housed in, thehousingbeing of ornamental shape to give the desk and housing suitableornamental finish anddesign. As shown in Fig. 1, the housing is'ofpaneled form andhas a front opening 16 that is snugly filled by the bookcasing when the same is raised. f The housing includes the vertical endportions 18 that close in the supports for the bookcasing and theelevating devices.

31- -31 designates vertical posts, one at.

each end of the vault, see Fig. 7, each of which has an inside cleat,orv guide 32'for i engaging'the notches 9 in the casingtop plate 27.

33 designates a hanger shaft journ aled on the upper end of the posts 31and whlch car- 'ries the winding pulleys 34 to which are secured; thehanger cables. 35 the lower ends of which attach to the top of thecasing as shown.'

. Copies of this atent-may be" obtained fer 36 designates a sprocketpulley over which passes the sprocket chain 37 that takes over a bottomsprocket wheel 38 journaled in a stub shaft 39 projected from theadjacent supporting standard, and which carries a gear worm 40 thatmeshes with a worm driver gear 41 on a crank shaft 42 the handle end ofwhich is located outside of the housing, see Fig. 1 and carries aratchet 43, for coacting with the :usual lockingapawl.

It will be noticed fromFigs 3 and 7 that the hanger "shaft is mounted atthe rear of the supporting posts and that the flanges of the windingpulleys havetheir rear edge in vertical alinement with guide cleats 44formed upon the inner face of a pair'of supplemental posts 45, (see Fig.7 to provide for a free and easy lift of"the .-counterpoise or weights46 whose ends are notched as at 47 for engaging the said. cleats 44. iTo further insure safety of the book cas ing and its contents, when thesame is lowered, bolts 48 aresecured uponthe opposite ends of the topplates 27 and they are adapted to interlock with the base of thestandards 31-31 when the said casing, is down, as shown .in Fig. 2. a

.49 designates fusible links in the cables or ropes on which'the bookcasing is suspended andthey are provided to insure .a positive drop ofthe casing into the vault incase offire; -50 designates a door or flapmember for closing the opening between the-top of the desk 4 and thebook casing whenthe latter is raised as inFig. 1.

What I claim is: I A combined book case and vault therefor, comprising adesk platform having an opening, a vault whose upper end terminates atthe 'openingin the-desk platform, a book case vertically movable withinthe vault,

guides on the inner walls. of the vault that hold the ends of thebook-case spaced from the wall. ends, guides on the book-case thatco-act withv the vault guides, supports that extend up from the platformat each end of the vault and which include two guides,

the said book-case including a. top whose edges form members thatcloseKover. the

space between the bookcase and the vault sides when the book-case islowered into the vault, the said top edges also having guide grooves.for engaging, the. guides on the vertical supports when the book-case,is elevated, and means operative above theplatform for raising andlowermg thebook-case.

Witnesses:

HOMER REY OLDS,

'J. R. WRIGHT.

- Washington, D. 0.

THoMas AMEs scorer.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner-e13 Paten'cs. I

